Aerial stock photos of the Pentagon are used in news stories and public affairs publications across the world, but have you ever thought about the work it takes to get that perfect shot?
Despite all of today's technology, it's not easy. You can't exactly toss a drone into the sky and take some photos like you might be able to elsewhere. The airspace over the National Capital Region is more restricted than in any other part of the country. Federal Aviation Administration rules put in place after the 9/11 attacks limit aircraft operations to those with FAA and Transportation Security Administration authorization. Violators face stiff fines and criminal penalties.
Luckily, the Defense Media Activity's Pentagon Bureau was able to coordinate a ride through the Army Military District of Washington's 12th Aviation Battalion.
Based at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, the battalion has a special mission in which it transports senior Army, DOD and government leaders around the D.C. area when necessary, as well as conducts training flights to keep their skills fresh. Our team of five multimedia specialists recently hitched a ride in a UH-60 Black Hawk on an evening training flight over the Pentagon and surrounding areas to get photos and video of the U.S. military's headquarters.
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To get the proper permission, the air crew had to file a detailed flight plan with the FAA. Once in the air, they worked directly with air traffic controllers at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to deconflict the air space in which we were traveling.
The air crew for our flight was from Charlie Company of the 12th Aviation Battalion: Chief Warrant Officers 2 Kyle Clark and Tyler Oliver were our pilots, with Cpl. Enrique Cuevas as crew chief. Cuevas gave us a safety briefing before the flight, then the crew pointed out the best seats for taking photos once we got airborne.
We did two flyovers. The first was to get the lay of the land and to let everyone practice shooting photos and video in a noisy, bumpy and windy environment. The pilots took us on a bit of a tour along the Potomac River, pointing out landmarks like Mount Vernon, the Washington Monument and even the White House, before doing some circles around the Pentagon at various authorized altitudes.
Once we got back, we took a little breather and readjusted. Then we went back up for our second, more direct flight, which took us right to the Pentagon for 'golden hour' — that last hour of the day before sunset, which tends to provide great lighting for stunning photos.
After a few circles, some altitude changes and many, many, MANY snaps, our team got what they needed, and we headed back to the airfield. Once back on solid ground, we thanked our gracious hosts and called it a night.
Narrowing It Down
Having spent a lot of time with photographers over the years, I've learned that a key to getting a great photo when your time is limited is to take a ton of them.
By the end of the two flights for this mission, the two photographers on the team who were focused specifically on photos — Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Alex Kubitza and Air Force Staff Sgt. John Wright — said that they took a combined 1,159 photos of the Pentagon.
You read that right. ONE THOUSAND, ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-NINE photos — JUST of the Pentagon. That's not including the other landmarks we flew over.
So, how do you narrow down that many photos to get the real winners? Every photographer has their own process because — as you might imagine — it's quite a task.
"I use a star system in the software I use. I go through all the photos and put down one star if I like the photograph, then I'll go through only the ones with one star and narrow it down further by marking even better photographs with two stars,” Kubitza said. "I repeat this process until I get photographs that tell the full story."
"I try to narrow it down to the best handful of photos by assessing focus, exposure, framing, composition and various other factors that make a photo both informational and visually appealing,” Wright explained. This process can take a long time.
"Editing and captioning photos can take anywhere from two to four hours, or more, depending on the number of original shots,” he continued. "For many, the mission is complete once the aircraft lands or the training exercise ends, but for us, the mission is only halfway done."
So, there you have it. While taking photos has gotten easier over the years thanks to new smartphone technology, there are still some shots that take a team to get.